Global China: From the Mongols to the Ming dynasty of China

Last updated on May 16, 2022 6:14 pm

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Introduction

Explore the impact of the conquest from the Mongols to the Ming dynasty of china and the world.

Overview

Modern China presents a dual image: a society transforming itself through economic development and infrastructure investment that aspires to global leadership; and the world’s largest and oldest bureaucratic state, with multiple traditions in its cultural, economic, and political life. The modern society and state that is emerging in China bear the indelible imprint of China’s historical experience, of its patterns of philosophy and religion, and of its social and political thought. These themes are discussed in order to understand China in the twenty-first century and as a great world civilization that developed along lines different from those of the Mediterranean.

ChinaX makes the riches of Harvard’s collections and the expertise of its faculty accessible to learners worldwide. We will engage intellectual and religious trends, material and political culture, the local diversity and the national unity, art and literature, and China’s economic and political transformation— past, present, and future.

China: Civilization and Empire explores the development of this great civilization from the Neolithic to the last dynasty. We will see the formation of the political structures and social practices that have lasted into the present; Then we will learn to appreciate artistic and literary traditions of sophistication and refinement; we inquire into its philosophical and religious legacies and their significance for our own lives, and we trace the creation of the largest economy in world history.

Objectives

In China: Civilization and Empire, you will learn to develop your own approaches to history and gain a critical appreciation of China’s literary, philosophical, political, and cultural resources. You will also learn to express ideas more clearly and confidently; to think more analytically and critically through the study of primary and secondary sources.

Parts 1-5 span over 6,000 years of history. Each part consists of 4-8 sections, each with videos, readings, interactive engagements, assessments, and discussion forums.

ChinaX series: Chinese Civilization and Empire consist of the following five parts, a total of 25 sections:

• Part-1: China’s Political and Intellectual Foundations: From Sage Kings to Confucius
• Part-2: China’s First Empires and the Rise of Buddhism
• Part-3: Cosmopolitan Tang: Aristocratic Culture in China
• Part-4: Literati China: Examinations, Neo-Confucianism and Later Imperial China
• Part-5: Global China: From the Mongols to the Ming

ChinaX (Part 5): Global China: From the Mongols to the Ming dynasty of China

Explore the impact of the conquest dynasties and the world of the Ming dynasty of China. 

In the 13th century, by force of arms, the Mongols created the greatest empire in human history. Yet by the end of the Ming dynasty in the late 16th century, a new global economy emerged. New World silver brought together the Americas, Europe, and East Asia, and the intellectuals of East and West began to speak to each other directly. The founding of the Ming and the growth of the global silver trade spurred changes in social and political spheres, and the late Ming period brought new literature, philosophies, and religions, with shifting roles for women.

This course, part of a collection on the history and culture of China, will cover the Mongol’s large, multi-ethnic empire and the social, political, and cultural changes during the Ming dynasty. From early Mongol life at China’s northern border to the rise of Genghis Khan, we’ll take a deep dive into the territorial expansion of these traditionally nomadic people.

The establishment of a truly global China set the stage for even greater changes in the modern era. Enroll now to understand the context for these changes, and how the economic and political realities of today’s China originated in the region centuries ago.

What you’ll learn in ChinaX (Part 5)

• How the Mongols created the greatest empire in human history.
• Establishment of a new global economy by the Ming dynasty of China
• How New World silver brought together the Americas, Europe, and East Asia.
• Intellectuals of the East and West spoke directly to each other.
• How to analyze land-based versus sea-based approaches to empire-building.

Syllabus